Dale “Sebastian” Luckwitz is Sustainability Officer at Naturepedic. His mission is to help Naturepedic expand its positive impact beyond numerous product benefits into a wider lifecycle approach. To this end, Dale is involved in strengthening collaborations and uncovering new ways to make business greener and more efficient. He is also a vocal advocate for Naturepedic and loves talking organic mattresses whenever possible.

In addition to saving the planet, Dale likes reading, music, cooking, antiques, more music, and playing with his kids. He also is an avid movie watcher whose guilty pleasure is old black and white monster movies.

Dale holds a Master’s Degree in Teaching and Learning with Technology.

The entertainment industry, from music to movies to original programming delivered on cable, network and new media platforms, holds influence on how people view their world. Understanding how media shapes opinions, in 1989 entertainment executive Alan Horn and wife Cindy, along with iconic writer and producer Norman Lear (yes, that Norman Lear of All in the Family, The Jeffersons, One Day At A Time, and more) and wife Lyn founded the Environmental Media Association (EMA). The EMA leverages the considerable power of the entertainment industry to affect environmental change. This change is not just within the industry through the encouragement of more responsible production methods, but also with the general public by using celebrity power to educate and inform. The EMA even works with writers and directors to help integrate responsible environmental messaging into movies and television. As part of the EMA’s ongoing dedication to promote a healthier planet with healthier people, the organization launched the EMA Healthy Family Seal.[…]

Dale “Sebastian” Luckwitz is Sustainability Officer at Naturepedic. His mission is to help Naturepedic expand its positive impact beyond numerous product benefits into a wider lifecycle approach. To this end, Dale is involved in strengthening collaborations and uncovering new ways to make business greener and more efficient. He is also a vocal advocate for Naturepedic and loves talking organic mattresses whenever possible.

In addition to saving the planet, Dale likes reading, music, cooking, antiques, more music, and playing with his kids. He also is an avid movie watcher whose guilty pleasure is old black and white monster movies.

Dale holds a Master’s Degree in Teaching and Learning with Technology.

Let’s talk about your organic mattress and how it relates to the birds and bees. Well, just the bees. A report by the Organic Center suggests that practices used by organic farms (such as organic cotton farms) promote the health of pollinator bees, whose populations have been in decline since the identification of Colony Collapse Disorder in 2006. What is Colony Collapse? While researchers can say what Colony Collapse Disorder means for bees, they can’t say exactly why it is happening. Over the past ten years, bee keepers have lost more than a third of their hive populations (two Naturepedic employees who raise bees have been impacted by this decline). With CCD, adult worker bees disappear from hives in winter, sometimes leading to a total collapse of the bee colony. No one factor has been found to be the total cause of CCD. Rather, researchers are finding a variety of factors that likely contribute. Such factors include viral and parasitic[…]

Gloria is passionate about getting down to the bottom of things – especially where personal health and the environment are concerned. After helping to build and acting as administrator of a Canadian medical center specializing in nutritional biochemistry, Gloria came to the U.S. where she has consulted for hundreds of natural healthcare private practices nationwide. Over the last decade, Gloria has focused her attention researching and writing on the real causes of declining health, disease prevention, and solutions that isolate and treat the cause of disease rather than the symptoms.

Gloria is dedicated to Naturepedic—loves the products, and the role the company has taken as a leader in helping to create a non-toxic, safe environment.

Women who are not committed to non-toxic living, even though they know at least a little about the dangers of some of the chemicals in their lives, often find themselves more serious about the subject when they become pregnant. Having a few toxins in your own system is one thing; foisting them off on your innocent and somewhat defenseless little one is another story. So, now that you’re taking a more serious look at all of this, what do you do? Before we get into the ten simple ways you can create a non-toxic home, I would like to impress upon you that the first step is to create a non-toxic nursery. That’s where your baby will be spending most of their time for the next year or two. Start with a non-toxic crib mattress, one that doesn’t emit harmful chemical fumes into the air your baby will breathe for 12 to 18 hours a day, and go from there.[…]

Gloria is passionate about getting down to the bottom of things – especially where personal health and the environment are concerned. After helping to build and acting as administrator of a Canadian medical center specializing in nutritional biochemistry, Gloria came to the U.S. where she has consulted for hundreds of natural healthcare private practices nationwide. Over the last decade, Gloria has focused her attention researching and writing on the real causes of declining health, disease prevention, and solutions that isolate and treat the cause of disease rather than the symptoms.

Gloria is dedicated to Naturepedic—loves the products, and the role the company has taken as a leader in helping to create a non-toxic, safe environment.

Whether you’re a DIY’er or having your child’s nursery (or any other part of your home) renovated or decorated professionally, you might want to take a look at the recent study done by HealthyStuff.org and the Ecology Center on the toxic chemicals found in flooring and wallpaper. HealthyStuff.org tested a whopping 3,300 home improvement products – 1,106 samples of flooring, and 2,312 samples of wallpaper. None of the products tested are currently subject to any regulation regarding toxic chemical contents. In fact, the database of the results is the largest publicly available database of toxic chemicals in home improvement products. The results were pretty amazing. Here are the overall findings from the horse’s mouth: “Heavy metals and other additives are commonly found in residential flooring and wallpaper. These chemicals include lead, cadmium, flame retardants, tin compounds and phthalates — harmful chemicals that are linked to asthma, reproductive problems, developmental and learning disabilities, hormone problems and cancer.” “Home improvement products are[…]

Gloria is passionate about getting down to the bottom of things – especially where personal health and the environment are concerned. After helping to build and acting as administrator of a Canadian medical center specializing in nutritional biochemistry, Gloria came to the U.S. where she has consulted for hundreds of natural healthcare private practices nationwide. Over the last decade, Gloria has focused her attention researching and writing on the real causes of declining health, disease prevention, and solutions that isolate and treat the cause of disease rather than the symptoms.

Gloria is dedicated to Naturepedic—loves the products, and the role the company has taken as a leader in helping to create a non-toxic, safe environment.

It used to be a usual thing that soon-to-be moms would quit drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes. A wise choice. But these days we have much more to worry about in terms of toxins. In fact, study after study has shown traces of toxic chemicals in breast milk and the blood and urine of pregnant moms. And we now know that these chemicals transfer to the baby. What can you do to protect your child from the chemical onslaught? In addition to getting your baby a crib, crib mattress, changing pad, clothing, linens and food that is free of toxic chemicals, it’s time to change other things in your household to help you stop accumulating toxins in your own body. Here’s a list of simple things you can do to remove general toxins from your environment. – Get rid of your PVC vinyl shower curtain. These shower curtains off-gas toxic chemicals. Instead, switch to cotton or hemp. They work just[…]

Gloria is passionate about getting down to the bottom of things – especially where personal health and the environment are concerned. After helping to build and acting as administrator of a Canadian medical center specializing in nutritional biochemistry, Gloria came to the U.S. where she has consulted for hundreds of natural healthcare private practices nationwide. Over the last decade, Gloria has focused her attention researching and writing on the real causes of declining health, disease prevention, and solutions that isolate and treat the cause of disease rather than the symptoms.

Gloria is dedicated to Naturepedic—loves the products, and the role the company has taken as a leader in helping to create a non-toxic, safe environment.

If you’re concerned about the materials used in your child’s crib mattress, you should also have a very close look at the toxic chemical content of cribs, dressers, changing tables, and even outdoor furniture and decking. Fortunately, there are easy alternatives to using these chemicals, including building materials that may have fallen under your radar. What toxic chemicals do you have to worry about in furniture? One of the primary offenders is formaldehyde. Plywoods and particleboard, which are often included in furniture even if they don’t comprise the entire structure, are glued together with formaldehyde-based resins or urea-formaldehyde (UF) glue. Formaldehyde, which off-gasses for years into the air you and your children breath, has been classified by the EPA as a probable carcinogen. Healthy Child Healthy World recently published a list of alternatives: – Certified-sustainable hardwood cabinets and furniture utilizing traditional joinery and stainless steel drawer bottoms, salvaged wood, UF-free fiberboard, or baked-enamel metal, which emit less chemical vapor into[…]

Gloria is passionate about getting down to the bottom of things – especially where personal health and the environment are concerned. After helping to build and acting as administrator of a Canadian medical center specializing in nutritional biochemistry, Gloria came to the U.S. where she has consulted for hundreds of natural healthcare private practices nationwide. Over the last decade, Gloria has focused her attention researching and writing on the real causes of declining health, disease prevention, and solutions that isolate and treat the cause of disease rather than the symptoms.

Gloria is dedicated to Naturepedic—loves the products, and the role the company has taken as a leader in helping to create a non-toxic, safe environment.

Safer Chemicals Healthy Families, an organization dedicated to ensuring new safety standards for chemicals are established and met, has released a video made by Moms, for Moms to help educate families and organizations on the dangers of toxic chemicals. It’s called Moms Take Action Against Toxic Chemicals, and is available by following the link. Safer Chemicals Healthy Families is a coalition representing more than 11 million people in the U.S. including parents, health professionals, advocates for people with learning and developmental disabilities, reproductive health advocates, environmentalists and businesses. They provide a wealth of information and are working to reform the Toxic Substances Control Act. The Act was written in 1976 and has not changed since that time despite growing evidence of the link between toxic chemicals and health. Chemicals have been linked to everything from diabetes to learning disabilities. Naturepedic is also a member of the coalition. Our organic crib mattresses are designed to help prevent exposure to toxic chemicals,[…]

Gloria is passionate about getting down to the bottom of things – especially where personal health and the environment are concerned. After helping to build and acting as administrator of a Canadian medical center specializing in nutritional biochemistry, Gloria came to the U.S. where she has consulted for hundreds of natural healthcare private practices nationwide. Over the last decade, Gloria has focused her attention researching and writing on the real causes of declining health, disease prevention, and solutions that isolate and treat the cause of disease rather than the symptoms.

Gloria is dedicated to Naturepedic—loves the products, and the role the company has taken as a leader in helping to create a non-toxic, safe environment.

Decades ago, clothing, linens and other textiles were anything but easy-care. The fabrics were heavy and cumbersome to clean, took forever to dry, and had more wrinkles than a Shar Pei. This kept housewives, which was just about every wife at the time, pretty busy. When synthetic fibers came into the picture, American women sighed with relief. The clothes and linens were lighter, washed quickly, dried quickly, and wrinkles, if there were any, practically shook out. We’ve come to expect that – even with baby clothes, blankets and the bedding we use on crib mattresses. However, over the years we’ve discovered more about the chemicals some of these synthetic fabrics actually have in and on them, and the blush is definitely fading from the easy-care chemical rose. What chemicals can your baby be exposed to with crib bedding? Labels like ‘crease-resistant,’ ‘crease-proof,’ ‘no iron,’ ‘wrinkle-resistant,’ ‘durable press,’ ‘easy-care’, ‘wrinkle-free’, ‘stain-resistant,’ ‘wash and wear,’ and ‘permanent press’ mean the fabrics are[…]

Gloria is passionate about getting down to the bottom of things – especially where personal health and the environment are concerned. After helping to build and acting as administrator of a Canadian medical center specializing in nutritional biochemistry, Gloria came to the U.S. where she has consulted for hundreds of natural healthcare private practices nationwide. Over the last decade, Gloria has focused her attention researching and writing on the real causes of declining health, disease prevention, and solutions that isolate and treat the cause of disease rather than the symptoms.

Gloria is dedicated to Naturepedic—loves the products, and the role the company has taken as a leader in helping to create a non-toxic, safe environment.

The subject of ‘safe’ paint can be pretty daunting. There are so many types of paint available, and so many varying degrees of safety, it’s hard to get to the bottom line. While there’s a lot to know about the subject, one of the most important health concerns is the use of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). VOCs are the solvents used in paint that carry the pigment. As the paint dries, the VOCs evaporate and give off that recognizable new paint smell. But the smell is not just a smell, it’s also an indication that the VOCs are in the air we breathe. VOCs have been linked to asthma attacks, throat and eye irritation, nausea, headaches, and a number of other health problems. Long term exposure can lead to cancer and kidney and liver disease. Although the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has regulations about VOCs, many experts think they don’t go far enough. For example, the EPA allows 250 grams[…]

Gloria is passionate about getting down to the bottom of things – especially where personal health and the environment are concerned. After helping to build and acting as administrator of a Canadian medical center specializing in nutritional biochemistry, Gloria came to the U.S. where she has consulted for hundreds of natural healthcare private practices nationwide. Over the last decade, Gloria has focused her attention researching and writing on the real causes of declining health, disease prevention, and solutions that isolate and treat the cause of disease rather than the symptoms.

Gloria is dedicated to Naturepedic—loves the products, and the role the company has taken as a leader in helping to create a non-toxic, safe environment.

Years ago I read a book called “How to Grow Fresh Air: 50 House Plants that Purify Your Home or Office.” The book is very informative. It covers the various factors that contribute to our poor indoor air quality – everything from the 1973 OPEC oil embargo to new materials used for building, furnishings, and so on – and tells us which plants absorb and help neutralize the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) being emitted from these materials. It’s very specific – tells you which plants are good for which compounds. I lost my copy of the book in a move, and am definitely going to get another. The link above goes to Amazon.com if you’re interested in getting one. What reminded me of this book is that I just read the results of a two-year study conducted by NASA and the Associated Landscape Contractors of America (ALCA) on house plants cleaning indoor air. They put each plant in sealed, Plexiglas[…]